Al Azizia and Flagship references: Sharifs boycott proceedings till IHC ruling

ISLAMABAD: Accountability Court-I Judge Mohammad Bashir on Wednesday resumed hearing Al Azizia and Flagship corruption references against former prime minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif.

As the hearing went under way, Nawaz's counsel Khawaja Haris reiterated his objection to the proceedings being heard by the same judge that had already ruled in one of the three corruption cases against his client.

The judge remarked that he had written about the matter to the high court, adding that transferring the case to another court did not come within his purview. NAB Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi argued that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had not stayed the trial proceedings and called for continuation of the cases.

He said it would be appropriate if the same judge who had overseen the case since day one presided over the trial in its concluding phase. With regard to conducting the trial inside the jail, the judge observed that it was not a simple matter where one could just pick up everything and start hearing the case (inside the jail).

Haris claimed that the objective behind the jail trial was to prevent his client from being seen or heard before the July 25 election. He said they would not become part of the proceedings until the IHC ruled on their plea to transfer the case to another trial court.

The hearing was then adjourned until July 30. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) took up the Sharif family's appeals on Tuesday and issued notices to the NAB and adjourned the matter until the last week of July.